Institute of Healthy Ageing and Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, London, UK.
Cell Biology and Neurobiology Branch, National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Biogerontology. 2017 Dec;18(6):913-929. doi: 10.1007/s10522-017-9724-6. Epub 2017 Aug 9.
The field of the biology of ageing has received increasing attention from a biomedical point of view over the past decades. The main reason has been the realisation that increases in human population life expectancy are accompanied by late onset diseases. Indeed, ageing is the most important risk factor for a number of neoplastic, neurodegenerative and metabolic pathologies. Advances in the knowledge of the genetics of ageing, mainly through research in model organisms, have implicated various cellular processes and the respective signalling pathways that regulate them in cellular and organismal ageing. Associated with ageing is a dysregulation of metabolic homeostasis usually manifested as age-related obesity, diminished insulin sensitivity and impaired glucose and lipid homeostasis. Metabolic deterioration contributes to the ageing phenotype and metabolic pathologies are thought to be one of the main factors limiting the potential for lifespan extension. Great efforts have been directed towards identifying pharmacological interventions with the potential to improve healthspan and a number of natural and synthetic compounds have shown promise in achieving beneficial metabolic effects.
过去几十年来，从医学的角度来看，衰老生物学领域受到了越来越多的关注。主要原因是人们意识到人类人口预期寿命的增加伴随着晚期发病疾病。事实上，衰老是许多肿瘤、神经退行性和代谢性疾病的最重要危险因素。通过对模式生物的研究，对衰老遗传学的认识的进步，使人们认识到各种细胞过程及其调节细胞和机体衰老的信号通路。与衰老相关的是代谢平衡的失调，通常表现为与年龄相关的肥胖、胰岛素敏感性降低以及葡萄糖和脂质代谢平衡受损。代谢恶化导致衰老表型，代谢疾病被认为是限制潜在寿命延长的主要因素之一。人们已经努力寻找具有改善健康寿命潜力的药物干预措施，并且已经有一些天然和合成化合物显示出实现有益代谢效果的潜力。
